Lock



A. LEVINE Dec. 5, 1933.

LOCK

Filed Oct. 10, 1931 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 5, 1933 LOCK Abraham Levine,Elizabeth, J., assignor to Presto Lock Corporation, New York, N. Y., acorporation of New York Application October 10, 1931. Serial No. 567,995

d'Claims. (01. 292- 7) This invention relates to locking devices.

The invention is described herein in its particular application forlocking devices used on flexible bags, such as leather envelopes or thelike; it is to be understood, however, that this application is notintended to be restrictive, but merely to illustrate a possibleapplication of the invention. The invention is capable of application toany situation where two parts of a locking device are to be movedsubstantially in alignment at, or during, the time of their engagement.Also, by giving curvature to certain elements of the locking device,features of the invention maybe applied for locking together elementswhich do not have aligned movement at the time of their engagement.

In the particular constructionherein involved, a plug lock is receivedwithin a strike, the plug and strike being constructed so that aresilient member inone of them is engaged in a notch or recess in theother to prevent their separation, a push button being provided to forcethe resilient member, at will, out of the engaging relationship. Inassociation with these parts is a spring member or like element, thetendency of which is to move the plug and the strike apart, when theyhave been associated as indicated. Upon actuation of the push button,there results the separation of the resilient member from its notch orrecess, the spring member separating plug and strike to a suificientextent to make impossible thereengagement of the resilient memher withits notch or recesss when the push buttonis released. Also, the actionof thespring member causes the plug tomove out of the strike in orderthat further and more complete separation of these parts, as desired,may be effected.

It is an object of the invention to provide a locking device capable ofretaining two members associated merely by pushing together two parts ofthe device, these parts being released for separation upon actuating areleasing means, and means being provided to separate, at leastslightly, at such time, the two parts of the device to prevent reengagemnt of the locking elements after the releasing means is permitted toreturn to inactivity. 7

Other objects of this invention will be hereinafter set forth, or willbe apparent from the desoription and the drawing, in which isillustrated an embodiment of apparatus for carrying out the invention.

The invention, however, is not intended to be restricted to anyparticular construction and arrangement of parts, or to any particulaapplication of such construction, or to the specific methods of use, orto any ofthe various details thereof, herein shown and described, as thesame may. be modified in various particulars or be applied in manyvaried relations without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention, the practical embodiment herein illustrated and describedbeing merely to show one of the various forms and modifications in whichthe invention may be embodied. a

For the attainment of these objects and of such other objects as mayhereinafter appear or be pointed out, I have illustratedthis embodimentof my invention in the drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of portions of a pouch with which has beenassociated a locking device, embodying the invention; I

Fig.2 is an exploded view, in elevation, of the locking elements;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section, on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2,-through thestrikeand the plug of the lock;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view, to an enlarged scale, on the line4-4 of Fig. 2, to illustrate the internal construction of the plug;

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view, to the same scale as Fig. 4,taken on the line 55 of Fig. 12, toillustrate the arrangement'ofparts ofthe strike; I 7

Fig. 6 is a view, similar to Fig. 3, except that the parts are shown inlocking relation and to an enlarged scale; and

Fig.7 is a detail sectional view, on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6,demonstrating the action of a portion of the mechanism.

A look 10, embodying the invention, is shown on the drawing asassociated with a pouch 12, the strike 14 being mounted directly uponthe body 16 of thepouch, while the plug 18 is secured to a flap 20,whereby the flap mayybe secured to close the open top of the pouch, orfor similar purposes.

Strike 14 may be constructed in any desired manner; a preferred assemblyincludes a shield plate 22 and an housing 24. The housing may be formedfrom a piece of sheet metal, properly dished, and having prongs 26 leftextending therefrom. These prongs are intended for reception throughopenings 28 in plate 22. They preferably are also passed throughopenings 30 in a clip 32 and are bent down to retain the housing, plateand clip fixedly associated. Wings 34 of the clip are, in thisparticular construction, passed through slits 36 cut in the leather ofthe body wall and have a Washer 38 positioned thereover. The wings arethen bent over the washer and serve to retain the assembled strikefirmly associated with body 16.

In plate 22, a slot 40 is formed so as to leave at one end an ear 42,preferably integrally formed with the plate, extending into the slot. Aleaf spring 44 is seated against the bottom face of the plate and withinthe space 46 provided by the flanged edges 48 of the plate. Thespring isretained in this relationship by extending ear 42 through a hole 50 inthe spring, and hammering the ear down against the spring. The spring isdeformed to extend normally through slot 40; at its free end, in anopening therefor provided, the stem 52 of a button 54 is retained. Thestem is slightly riveted over, as at 56, to enlarge the end sufiicientlyto prevent separation of the stem from the spring, yet permittingconsiderable rocking movement of the stem, and, therefore, of the buttonwith relation to the spring. The button, when the elements of the strikeare completely assembled, extends through an opening 58 in housing 24 sothat it may be engaged by a finger for depressing spring 44.

Just to the rear of stem 52 is struck up a boss 60; the normal upwardbiasing of the spring will position this boss above the level of plate22, and tend to force it into a recess 62 in plug 18, when the latter ispositioned within the strike, as hereinafter appears, a face 6401? therecess and an edge 66 of the boss interlocking to retain the strike andthe plug against separation.

The plug is constructed in any desired manner, either as a solid pieceor, in a preferred embodiment, by forming two shells 68 and 70 withflanged edges '72 and 74. These shells are so dimensioned that they maybe interfitted snugly. In such case recess 62 would be formed by asloping, tapering surface '76 in shell 70 and a wall of flanged edge 72,face 64 being that of flanged edge '72. These two shells preferably areheld in interlocked relationship by a pair of tongues 78 on one shell,brought into engagement with the other shell and soldered or otherwisesecured fixedly thereto.

Shell 68 is formed with a pressed, enlarged section 80. When section 82of the plug is inserted into passage 84 of the strike, within which itis intended to fit snugly, the plug will be stopped by section againstexcess inward movement. An opening 86 is provided in the vertical wall88 of the section 80 and has extending therethrough the looped end 90 ofa leaf spring 92, housed within a chamber 94 provided by section 80.When the plug is inserted into the strike, and edge 72 moved over boss60, preferably formed as a carnming surface to permit this relativemovement ofedge and boss, end 90 is located so that it will come: intoabutment with edge 96 of the housing and, as the plug is forced into thestrike to complete the interlocking engagement of recess and boss,spring 92 will be compressed. Thus, when the engagement of boss andrecess is finally effected, there will be active a positive force,tending to drive the plug out of the housing. If button 54 now bepressed and the boss thus be separated from the recess, spring 92 willpush the plug at least partially out of the housing andwill separate theboss and the recess to a sufficient extent that, upon release of thebutton, the recess and the boss may not reengage.

Briefly, therefore, the operation of this device involves merely theinsertion of the plug into the housing, against the action of spring 92,until the recess engages over the boss, whereupon. the

two members are engaged against separation. On depression of the button54, spring 92 separates the strike from the plug to make inactive thelocking mechanism of the device until strike and plug are againpositively driven together.

While the specific plug and strike herein are associated by movementalong a straight line, it will be obvious that they may be associatedotherwise than by motion in a straight line.

Many other changes could be effected in the particular apparatusdesigned, and in the methods of use set forth, and in specific detailsthereof, without substantially departing from the invention intended tobe defined in the claims, the specific description being merely for anoperative embodiment carrying out the spirit of the invention.

' Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what Iclaim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In latchingmechanism for containers, a hollow plug member, a thin walled receptacleadapted to receive said plug in close-fitting sliding engagement and ofsubstantially the same size and contour as the plug, a hollow elongatedenlargement extending transversely across the outer side of said plug,said enlargement forming a shoulder to limit the entrance of the pluginto the receptacle and having an opening in its shoulder portionadjacent the outer side of the plug, a resilient member within saidhollow enlargement and having a portion thereof extending throughsaid'opening in close proximity to the front wall cf said plug, saidextending portion of said resilient member being adapted to force saidplug away from said receptacle when they are not interlocked, and to beforced within the confines of said enlargement when said plug andreceptacle are brought into interlocking relation, a depression in theinner face of said plug provided with a shoulder, a resilient member onthe rear wall of said receptacle adapted to engage said shoulder'and tohold said plug and receptacle in locking relation, and means projectingout of the forward wall of the receptacle and adapted for manualoperation to cause disengagement of said resilient member and said plug.

2. 'In latching mechanism for containers, a plug member, a thin walledreceptacle adapted to receive said plug in close-fitting slidingengagement, so as to prevent lateral relative motion, and ofsubstantially the same size and contour as the plug, a hollow elongatedenlargement extending transversely across the outer side of the plug,said enlargement forming a shoulder to limit the entrance of the pluginto the receptacle and having an opening in its shoulder portionadjacent the outer side of the plug, a resilient member within saidhollow enlargement and having a portion thereof extending through saidopening, in close proximity to the front wall of said plug, saidextending portion of said resilient member being adapted to engage aterminal portion of said receptacle toforce said plug away fromsaidreceptacle when they are not interlocked, and to be forced withinthe confines of said enlargement when said plug and receptacle arebrought into interlocking relation, a depression in the inner face ofsaid plug provided with a shoulder, and a resilient member on the rearwall of said receptacle adapted to engage said shoulder and to hold saidplug and receptacle in looking relation.

3. In latching mechanism for containers, a plug member, a thin walledreceptacle adapted to receive said plug in close-fitting slidingengagement, so as to prevent relative motion laterally, and ofsubstantially the same size and contour as the plug, a hollow elongatedenlargement extending transversely across the outer side of the plug,said enlargement forming a shoulder to limit the entrance of the pluginto the receptacle and having an opening in its shoulder portionadjacent the outer side of the plug, a resilient member within saidhollow enlargement and having a portion thereof extending through saidopening in close proximity to the front wall of said plug, saidextending portion of said resilient member being adapted to engage aterminal portion of said receptacle to force said plug away from saidreceptacle when they are not interlocked, and to be forced within theconfines of said receptacle when said plug and receptacle are broughtinto interlocking relation, a depression in the inner face of said plugprovided with a shoulder, a resilient member on the rear wall of saidreceptacle adapted to engage said shoulder and to hold said plug andreceptacle in looking relation, and means projecting out of the forwardwall of the receptacle, adapted for manual operation to causedisengagement of said resilient member and said plug.

4. In a locking device for flexible bags and the like, comprising a plugand a strike, said plug comprising a plurality of sheet metal partsconstituting the 'walls thereof, a hollowed-out portion in one of saidparts and said part also provided at its free terminal portion with anabutment adapted to interengage with locking means carried by thestrike, said strike comprising a sheet metal walled receptacle adaptedto receive said plug in close sliding engagement therewith and providedwith resilient locking means adapted to engage said abutment for lockingpurposes, and resilient means'within said hollowed out portion adaptedto engage a terminal portion of the wall of said strike and toautomatically move said plug away from the position Where interlockingbetween plug and strike becomes possible, and manually operative meansfor disengaging said resilient locking means from said abutment.

ABRAHAM LEVINE.

